Ancient Underwater City Becomes Major Tourist Attraction

Qiandao Lake in Zhejiang Province of China hides in its depths an entire old city, which was sunk by the Chinese authorities in 1959 when the construction of hydropower in the region was a priority, writes inhabitant.

The town was called the Lion City and was built over a thousand years ago, receiving its name from the mountain Five Lion. The settlement had a rich history and an impressive reputation, despite the flooded lake to be created that spans an area of 573 square kilometers, meant to serve the hydropower. Now the city has become a tourist attraction extremely popular. Although at a depth of between 26 and 40 meters underwater, the city is intact and gave many archaeologists and scientists untainted vision of life and the historical period the Chinese region where life was flourishing.

The first exploring idea in the underwater was made in 2001 by the members of a diving club in Beijing, at the request of regional officials responsible with the tourism development. Since then, tourists have come increasingly more now organizing themselves underwater views of the city throughout the year. A special submarine was built so that visitors can explore city streets flooded, but is not yet used because of restrictions imposed by the authorities care that could harm the ruins of the city under water.